the color, so she wore the outfit a lot. It made her wonder if she shouldn’t change it up more. Ryan might get tired of the same-o same-o. Angela chuckled. Ryan only saw her in shadow. How often she forgot. That was indeed a testament to him.
She’d barely seen Ryan since coming home, and that was okay because she was still trying to define exactly what her feelings were for him. She had decided it was definitely too soon. Too soon after a difficult divorce to be in a serious relationship—even with Ryan-stew. At the same time, no one had supplied her with a rulebook, so she didn’t know the appropriate number of weeks, months, years. Ryan wasn’t pushing for anything. He simply was a wonderful calming force in her life. And once again, because of her own stupid choices, she needed a calming force. Maybe they just needed time. Eventually, could she and Ryan …? That was a question not ready to be answered.
But today, they were going to walk-jog on the beach and then have lunch together. She had to admit she was eager to see him.
Jesse waved back to Angela from the riding lawn mower as she headed across the lawn toward the beach. He knew she would more than likely be seeing Ryan. He smiled to himself. Ryan made her happy, and he was proving himself to be a man of character. As Jesse contemplated such things, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He cut off the mower’s engine and answered.
“Hello.” There was no answer. He looked at the number on the screen, didn’t recognize it.
“Hello,” he said again.
“Jesse?” The voice was soft, a bit hesitant.
Every nerve in Jesse’s body stood on end. He knew the voice. It was a sound cemented in his memory. “Olivia?”
“Jesse, I didn’t know.” A sob caught in her throat. “I’m so sorry.”
“Know what? It’s okay.” He swallowed hard at the knot that was in his own throat. He didn’t know what she was talking about, but he couldn’t bear to hear Olivia cry.
“I thought you had died.” This time the tears were not held back.
Jesse could hear her crying and the anguish in her voice. “Livi, it’s all okay... don’t cry.”
“They told me ... Jesse, I wouldn’t have left if I’d known.” Olivia was now sobbing.
“It’s okay.” He didn’t know how to console her, so he let her cry. Her sobs tore at his heart, and he cried silently with her.
Finally, Olivia quieted. She struggled to regain her composure. “I need to talk to you, Jesse.”
“All right.” He nodded, trying to retain some form of composure. Her voice, Olivia’s voice—the one he heard in his dreams for four decades—now telling him they needed to talk.
“Do you have time now?” She said between sniffs. “It could be lengthy.”
“Now is fine.” He climbed off the mower and headed toward his house. It was hot out and the gravity of her tone told him there was much to be said—even more than he’d imagined. He swiped the sweat from his brow as he entered the house. Feeling a little off kilter, Jesse steadied himself against the doorframe for a few moments before heading to the kitchen. He wanted a cold drink and a good place to sit for this—a place that could hold him steady because right now, he felt like the entire earth had shifted on its axis, and he was hanging on by a thread.
Olivia was quiet for a long time. Then she said, “I buried my father this week.”
Standing in the kitchen doorway Jesse stopped again. Was this why she’d called? He was puzzled. But then, he remembered, Olivia always was a puzzle. “I’m sorry, Livi. Is there anything I can do to help?”
“Thank you, but no. He was ninety-three and had been ill for a long time. Cancer. He’d outlived his four-year prognosis. Still sad, but it didn’t come unexpectedly.”
Fully in his kitchen, Jesse washed his hands at the sink and splashed cold water on his face, then dried off with paper towels. “So sorry for your loss. And your mom?” Grabbing a bottle of water from the refrigerator, he dropped into his favorite easy chair in the adjacent living room.
“Mother passed away five years ago.”
“I am really sorry. I know it must be hard for you.”
“Thank you.” She paused. “This brings me to what I want to talk to you about. I want to share this with you as I heard it.” She sniffed. “I’m going